


MCSM Prompts/Drabbles

by Zonerz



Category: MCSM, Minecraft (Video Game), Minecraft storymode
Genre: Action, Blood, Blood and Injury, Fluff, Multi, all good!!!, its a wild array bro, its all light though, not really focused on just kinda apart of life lol, we got action, we got drama, we got fluff, we got friendships
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-29
Updated: 2019-05-14
Packaged: 2019-12-26 04:10:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 19,079
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18275510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Zonerz/pseuds/Zonerz
Summary: Basically these are a collection of random prompts and drabbles Ive thrown together in one place !!! AKA how much Jesskas can Zone write before growing bored? The Answer? Endlessly bro--But nah honestly these have been really fun because they've been able to let me explore other relationships and topics outside of my main fic !!! Which i love !!!! Like i got to write out a bit for Jesse and Aiden actually sitting down to talk and also got to rewrite important Season 2 scenes which we'll see if I do anything with later!Hope ya like !!!





	1. Instant Regret Lmao

“I immediately regret this decision.” Jesse groans, clinging tight to the prismarine giant. He doesn’t get long to dwell on his situation however as the colossal swings around once more, attempting to throw Jesse off it’s back. It’s deep voice booms slowly.

“ _ Come now Jesse, this is no way to face a challenge. Hiding in a blind spot? Really?” _

Jesse rolls his eyes and shakes his head with a lazy grin.  _ ‘Not cheating if it works!’ _ He bites his lip, blue eyes aiming upwards towards his target; the colossal’s head. Easy climb if the guy wasn’t constantly thrashing about to throw Jesse off! And if it was made out of something less slick like… Regular stone. That hadn’t just gotten out of the water. He sucks in a breath, leaping upwards with a yell and burying his hands in the practically hairline cracks of the giant. He huffs, eyes wide as the adrenaline rushes through him, making him hypersensitive to every little shift and move he makes. 

“ _ AH-! DON’T NONONO--” _ He yelps, his foothold crumbling beneath him and dropping him several feet before he slams his gauntlet into the rock. The prismarine gauntlet flares with it’s haunting green glow. Jesse gasps, feeling his stomach churn as he glances down. Regret. Immediate regret. Too high. Shouldn’t have even looked. He clenches his jaw, bracing himself and pulling his sword off of his back. He adjusts his grip on it with a small toss and with a small yell, yanks himself up with his right hand and stabs the sword into the rock with his left. The colossal hisses, a growl coming from its throat that shakes the rock beneath his fingers.  _ ‘Guess he didn’t like that!’ _ Jesse can’t help the grin that dances across his lips knowing he’s gotten under his enemy’s skin.

Or uh.. Shell? Layer? Crust? What’s the colossal equivalent? Jesse shakes it off, he’ll ask Lukas about it later. He probably has a word for it. He pulls himself up with the gauntlet, passing the sword so it’s about waist level. Readjusting his grip once more, he yanks the shimmering blue blade out of the prismarine. Looking up, he takes a breath and falls into a rhythm as he climbs. Sword, pull, grab, yank. Sword, pull, grab, yank. Rinse and repeat up and up until he finally reaches the shoulders of the monster. He sucks in a breath and yanks himself up on it’s shoulder, shoving himself to his feet. ‘ _ Back of the head, gotta get to the back of the head!’ _ He bounces on the balls of his feet, starting towards the back of the colossal’s neck but quickly comes to a screeching halt with a yelp. A large hand clamps down onto the colossal’s shoulder, mere inches from Jesse. He blows out a breath and immediately hops into action. Water kicks up from his boots as he sprints across the slick stone and leaps up onto the colossal’s hand.

“ _ Why you little--!” _ The thing bellows, raising its hand back as quickly as it can which is, of course, not fast at all. Jesse lets the hand lift enough to give him a good vantage point. He grins as he times the jump near perfectly, digging his blade into the base of the thing’s skull. It hitches, lurching forward suddenly and making Jesse cling to his sword for dear life. He survives but now has to act quick, knowing that the thing’ll be raising its hand to slap at Jesse like he’s nothing but a fly. He scrambles, pushing himself upwards towards the glowing back of the colossal’s head. He reaches the bottom edge of his target, thanking whatever god there may be that there was a ledge just big enough for him to stand on, even if it’s a bit awkward. Just don’t lean too far backward and hold on tight. Simple enough! He eyes the glowing back curiously and reaches out, pressing a hand to it.

_ Glass. _

It was curved too, making standing up truly straight rather impossible as it bulged outward. Looking deeper, past the glow, whatever substance it is inside swirls and glimmers in the green light. Different blues and greens dance in a mesmerizing sway. Had the situation been different, he could’ve easily watched it all night. But no, he snaps himself back to reality and glances at his sword then to the glass before him. It was thick. The sword alone wasn’t going to cut it. He glances down to his right hand at the glowing gauntlet. Sucking in a breath, he gets in as comfortable of a stance as possible. One wrong move and the wind of all things could end up being what knocks him down a few pegs. 

The gauntlet hums, rising in pitch as he pulls his arm back, near whistling as Jesse slams his fist into the glass with a yell, immediately following it up by jabbing his sword into the fractured glass and hanging tight. As expected, the colossal instinctively throws his head back, the green light flickering briefly at the initial impact. It staggers back, leaning against some of the town’s buildings for support. Jesse grins and gets comfy. Feet squared, left hand clinging to the hilt of his sword and his right winding up to  _ really _ start giving this guy a beating. He yells, slamming the glove into glass, a few shards flying to accompany the  _ sweet _ sound of it starting to crack. 

_ “STOP! Get off of me you dirty rotten-- AUGH!” _ The giant staggers about the main streets, reaching up to claw at it’s head but getting knocked back with each blow Jesse gives. From the ground, it’s obvious the way this fight is going to end and Lukas scans the streets around them for some way to help speed up the progress here. His horse dances in circles as he tensely grips the reigns. Once that thing passes out, it’s going to drop and crumble, but Jesse will probably come down with it. He bites his lip. If there’s a way to trip it up early, and make it crash onto its face rather than back, then Jesse could ride the thing down. Not ideal, but better than him blindly jumping off and praying he doesn’t get hit. Another booming cry and stagger of the thing reminds Lukas of how little time they have.  _ Think Lukas, think! _ His eyes narrow at the fallen tangle of line and wire, the daylight sensors that had once been strung high across the road shattered on the ground. He snaps his reigns, pushing his horse forward. He shoves his bow back onto his back, wraps his reigns around his lefts hand and drops off the right side of his horse, snatching up the cables with his right hand then pulling himself back up with his left. A few townsfolk on both sides of the street catch sight of him, realizing his idea as Lukas starts racing his horse back, pulling the wires a bit more taut. But it’s not enough. For this to work he’s gonna need more than just him and his horse. Blue eyes scan the otherside of the street pleadingly. Wary glances shift from Lukas and his makeshift tripwire up to the colossus.

The blonde huffs, mind beginning to race for other options when he notices the cables shift. Eyes darting across the cobbled street, he locks eyes with another young man who has both hands tightly gripped around the bundle of rope and wires. The pair gently nod in understanding at each other and Lukas watches the young man yell behind him, waving for others to seemingly join him. Lukas starts doing the same, racing against the clock. Within a few seconds, both sides of the street have equally matched teams. Lukas waves and yells to catch everyone’s attention. Everyone stands at the ready as they stare up at the giant. Another pained yell and it spins around, staggering forward and not seeming like it’s going to stop. Lukas lights up and screams.

“ **_PULL! NOW!_ ** _ ” _ He yanks his horse around, kicking it forward and helping pull his side up, the small group around him holding tight to steady it. Their tripwire is a go as each side braces themselves for the giant to stumble into it. The first stone boot threatens to dance over but with another hit from Jesse the thing gets tangled up perfectly as a chorus of surprised yells come from the sudden yank forward. Lukas grits his teeth, the rope that slipped through his hands burning the fingers. He hisses, clawing at it and holding tight. “HANG ON! DON’T LET HIM SLIP BY!” He yells, everyone once again finding their grip. He mumbles through gritted teeth, watching the colossus like a hawk, “ _ Come on Jesse!” _

Jesse pants, feeling his palms getting sweaty beneath his armor. He grips and regrips his sword, trying not to let himself slip when he needed to hang tight the most. Glancing down at the situation below him, he sucks in a steady breath then eyes the thin sheet of glass left. One final strike. He pulls his arm back to punch, the gauntlet humming once again but then stops. He hesitates, squinting his eyes at his target then over to his sword. He looks down one final time before making a decision. He leans forward and grips the gets a hold of what part of the glass he can and yanks the blade out. Standing back again, he eyes his sword, inspecting the entire blade up and down before looking back at his target. He grins again, tossing his sword into his right hand and twirling it around to grip it like a dagger. He stands, feet spread shoulder width apart and clamps his other hand down on top. With one harsh breath sucked in through his teeth, he winds up, pulls his forefront leg up then finally slams it down and yells as he drives the blade deep into the glowing target. He’s enveloped in the green flash that follows, holding as tight as he possibly can. The giant screams in agony, trying to stagger forward and regain some semblance of balance only to find its feet tied. As the flickering lights of its eyes and head go out, the giant starts it long collapse.

“ _ MOVE! RUN!” _ Lukas’ voice echoes through the street as a chorus of screams ring out. The townsfolk scram, darting in every direction as long as it leads them away from getting crushed. “ _ Hyah!” _ Lukas snaps his reigns, his horse racing forward, wanting to be ready at the giant’s side in case Jesse needs to make a last minute escape jump even if it meant getting up close and personal with the colossus. He clears its arms and ducks his head down low as it hits the ground with a deafening boom, the shockwave following nearly knocking him off of his horse. He covers his eyes as the dust blows past, his horse neighing, bucking and rearing in the meantime. He quietly pats her neck, whispering reassurances into her ear. Getting thrown off at the very last minute  after already winning wouldn’t exactly be a flattering story to tell. With both the dust and his horse eventually settled and the colossal making no sign of climbing back up, Lukas hops off his horse and darts over to the head of the thing. He stands on his tip toes, hopping a bit to try and spot his friend.

_ “Jesse?! Jesse! Hey!” _

No response.

He hesitates, panting as his eyes feverishly scan the outline of the thing. He frowns and quickly finds a hand and foothold, pulling himself up the giant’s head. He’s a good halfway up when he hears shuffling from above him. He pulls himself up, eyes wide and curious and quickly spots the familiar figure of Jesse. He may not look the most alive, but he’s certainly breathing.

“ _ Jess?” _ He calls, worry shining through his voice. A pause. Hesitation. Lukas feels his throat tighten, only to let out a massive sigh of relief as Jesse shakily pushes himself up. Two pairs of blue eyes meet, Jesse giving a tired smile and laugh, bleeding from several cuts down his face and prismarine dust giving his skin a ghastly green tint. Lukas laughs weakly in response. Jesse still has both hands tightly grasping the hilt of his sword despite their obvious shaking. He grins and shakes his head, a lighthearted atmosphere settling between them.

_ “Never _ let me do something like that  _ again…” _

 


	2. Wrong Shirt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> hehehehhehe soft and good trope,,,,,,,, shoutout to my friend Quib for enabling me when all I was truly asking for were action prompts LMAO

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> its short but sweet and Im love,,,,,

“Is that my shirt?” Lukas’ voice makes the otherwise groggy Jesse freeze in his tracks, suddenly alert. Lukas leans over his counter, eyeing Jesse curiously and unable to keep his own grin hidden. Jesse squints as he looks down at himself past the cup of coffee warming his hands. He blinks, letting go with one hand and using it to pluck at the kinda obviously large flannel draped over him and lazily buttoned--the buttons don’t even line up!

Jesse quietly blows out a sigh and slowly pads around to face Lukas with a sheepish grin, face flushed in embarrassment. He shrugs half-heartedly, not meeting Lukas in the eye as he sips from his cup and leans against the back of Lukas’ couch.  _ Great Job Jesse. Haven’t spent a week bunking here and you’ve already made it awkward. _ He looks up to the blonde, biting his lip in attempt to hide his nervous grin.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about..!”

Lukas snorts and raises a brow mischievously. He rests his head on his hand with a smirk. “Since when did  _ you _ start wearing flannels  _ City Boy?”  _

Jesse ducks his head down a bit, praying he could hide the redness in his cheeks behind his bangs and the shirt’s collar. He feels his heart flutter at the lighthearted tease. He smiles like a lovestruck puppy, unable to help it but uses it to his advantage. Leaning against the couch and smiling lovingly over at Lukas in the morning sun, Lukas can only stand keeping eye contact for so long. This dork. This charming dork. He covers his mouth and admires the various patterns in the countertop. Jesse snickers to himself and pushes off of the couch, walking over to meet Lukas on the opposite side of the counter. He places his coffee cup down in front of him, just at the edge of Lukas’ view, dragging his attention back upwards. He speaks proudly.

“I’m a man with a variety of tastes Lukas! I can pull it off too!”

“Uh huh… You know generally when people buy clothes for  _ themselves _ they get their correct size and uh...” Lukas glances Jesse up and down, eyeing the mismatched button job. 3 buttons undone up top, 2 in the middle matched with the wrong holes and the rest unbuttoned and lazily hanging off of him, not exactly leaving much to the imagination chest-wise. “Yknow… Usually they know how to put their clothes  _ on _ correctly.” He grins and Jesse rolls his eyes, playfully giving him a shove.

“ _ It’s a stylistic choice Lukas..!  _ But then again I guess I’m not surprised that you don’t know the latest fashion trends…  _ Tragic.” _ Jesse shakes his head, unable to hide his smile as he plays up the dramatics and instead hiding it behind his coffee mug. Lukas scoffs and rolls his eyes.

“You’re  _ ridiculous.” _

“Maybe… or maybe I’m just ahead of my time! You never know…!” He says in a sing-song tone as he swishes his coffee around in his mug, making Lukas laugh softly. He finally looks at Jesse genuinely.

“Jess, if you needed something extra to wrap around you, you could’ve just  _ asked… _ ”

“Aw, don’t like seeing me lounging around in your shirt?” Jesse teases, making Lukas go red. Jesse waves at him, now nervous that he was a bit too bold, “ _ Kidding! _ I’m kidding! I’m sorry actually… I honestly didn’t even realize I grabbed yours instead of mine! I just woke up and grabbed the first shirt I saw hanging on the edge of the bed.. Heh, my bad…” He holds onto his cup a bit tighter and rubs the back of his neck, his bangs falling gently into his face. He was a handsome man and frankly Lukas  _ would _ be lying if he said he didn’t like seeing Jesse so comfy in his own borrowed clothes. Not that he would admit it. Jesse hesitates but begins reaching for the top button he has done, “Here I-I can just go get my own. Sorry for being so intrusive.”

“No!” Lukas reaches out and places a hand on Jesse’s wrist, startling but stopping him. Jesse looks up at him, dumbfounded. Lukas clears his throat and eases up, shaking his head and waving Jesse’s worries off. “Nah, don’t worry about it honestly! Especially if you’re a bit chilled! I’m not afraid of Jesse-cooties.” He teases with a grin, making Jesse chuckle warmly. A lovely sound in the early morning. 

“Heh, yeah it’s starting to get a bit cooler now isn’t it..? To think I woke up freezing but still decided to kick off the blankets in my sleep…”

Now it’s Lukas’ turn to laugh but nod in tired understanding. “I get that. I get that all too well.”

“You do the same?”

“Yeah, especially when dreaming.”

“Huh. you never struck me as the type..” Jesse says, leaning over the counter, relaxed once more. Lukas shrugs with half a smile.

“Surprisingly not the first time I’ve heard that! But, back to the topic of being cold,” Lukas perks up, holding up a finger and then moving around to Jesse on the opposite side of the counter. Jesse turns to face him, looking up at him with a brow quirked curiously. Lukas gently slides his hands down the edges of the flannel to the first button. He take a breath and laughs a bit, “it’s rather hard to keep yourself warm if you don’t even wrap up correctly. What am I supposed to tell the others if you get sick? ‘Sorry gang, Jesse forgot how to button up a shirt and caught a debilitating cold. My bad fam!’ Like! Seriously Jess!” He jokes and Jesse laughs as Lukas begins fixing up the shirt.

“Hey man… I’m not a morning person, cut me some slack!”

“You can defeat the Witherstorm, bring down a computer that enslaved anyone it got its hands on, fight and win against a pair of old builders that are  _ who knows how old, _ literally got into a fist-fight with  _ God _ and  _ won _ , but you for all sakes and purposes  _ cannot _ put on a shirt… I suppose even you can’t be perfect..” He grins as he fixes the collar and then flattens out the wrinkles, running his hands across Jesse’s shoulders. Jesse huffs, smiling up warmly at Lukas.

“Guess not.”

Lukas lingers, lightly running his fingers over the soft fabric and soaking in the sunlight with the entrancing young man before him. Jesse quietly watches then slowly drags his loving gaze back upwards to Lukas, easily catching his eye. He couldn’t help it, he was still making up lost time from when Romeo whisked him away for near 3 months. He easily caught the taller man’s gaze and smiles, lazily wrapping his arms around Lukas’ waist. The blonde lets out a small somewhat nervous chuckle then smiles again, sliding his hand up to cup Jesse’s cheek. Jesse sighs and leans into the touch, suddenly feeling that drowsiness again. He could stay like this all day.

But that will have to wait! At least that’s what the sudden loud knock on the door reminded them of. Both quickly flush red and scoot back, Jesse coughs, using it as an excuse to hide his red face. Oh well. Soft mornings can be reserved for another time once things settle down again. He offers Lukas a sympathetic smile, the blonde simply shrugging with a smile in return. Eh. What’re ya gonna do right?


	3. See you Soon! :-)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Basically a rewrite of the end of Episode 2 from season 2 with my own lil personal additions and also from Lukas' perspective because !!!! He deserved better !!!! And I wanna build on his character during S2 more if Telltale wont--

“Hey Jesse? Be careful. Please.” 

Lukas’ hand lingers on the gold and white plating of Jesse’s armor. They made it through. There they stand in the morning sun at the peak of the admin’s crazy ice tower of terror. Had the situation not been so dire, Jesse would’ve enjoyed exploring and facing this place’s challenges a bit more. But sadly, that wasn’t the case. But they at least only had a few more things to do clean-up wise. 

Jesse gives a small amused hum, slowly smiling down at the gesture. He hesitates, glancing around at the others. Petra coughs loudly, dragging most of the attention away from Jesse and Lukas. Jesse grins and Lukas shakes his head with a small chuckle. Lifting his hand off of his arm, Jesse holds Lukas’ hand in both of his, nodding up to him.

“Do you think I’d  _ really _ do something to mess us up  _ now _ once we’ve already succeeded? That’s be a pretty dreary ending for your next book afterall…”

“Aw. Thinking ahead for  _ my _ sake. Touching! But I also wouldn’t put something reckless past you.” Lukas grins a bit, making Jesse laugh. The young man holds up his hands as he nods.

“Alright, alright, fair point I suppose!”

They laugh softly, enjoying each other’s company before Lukas blows out a sigh through his nose. He glances over his shoulder out of their exit and at the warm orange-pink glow of the morning sun. The gentle breeze wafting in through their exit blowing small unkept strands of hair into his face. Jesse sighs a little at the sight.

“You should get going… The others are waiting for you and I’m sure the town has some questions for us. You always answered the story-questions better than I did anyways.” Jesse smiles a little bit, trying to be comforting. But Lukas’ expression falls--he can’t help it. Something still isn’t sitting right with him. Sure he  _ knows _ better, he  _ knows _ that they defeated the Admin. They’re done with all of this! It’s what this whole castle thing was for! But something in the pit of his stomach keeps screaming at him to not let go of this moment. Not let Jesse out of his sight.

Jesse picks up on Lukas’ disease and sighs. He reaches up, pushing some of the blond hair out of his face and back behind his goggles. He does a rather miserable job of it but that’s not the point. Lukas smiles at the gesture, chuckling a bit--it brought him comfort. Jesse smiles reassuringly.

“Hey, we got this okay..? Don’t worry about me. I’ll be  _ right _ behind you. I  _ promise.” _ He smiles up at him and Lukas sighs.

“Jesse I just--” He cuts himself off, glancing over at the others unsurely then taking Jesse by the arm and walking him away a few steps and speaking quietly to him. “I don’t want to  _ worry _ you Jess, but something isn’t  _ right. _ I-I have a bad feeling in my gut and I mean yeah, sure, call it nerves or whatever but it’s just… It’s like this  _ dread _ I can’t shake for the  _ life of me!” _ He sucks in a breath, looking upwards in strain as if his answer or solution would be etched into the ice ceiling. But there’s nothing. Nothing but the dripping icicles above and Jesse’s confused and concerned look below. He looks back down at him, sighing. “I-I don’t feel right about just  _ leaving… _ ”

Jesse stands there, admittedly a bit unnerved by Lukas’ adamant concern. Sure he’d been a bit of a worry-wart in years past but those were all  _ reasonable _ . Right now they had defeated their threat, there was truly nothing to fear and yet here his friend was, in debatably the worse shape Jesse has ever seen him. He was serious, dead serious, and Jesse had no idea what to say.

“What can I do to make you feel better..? Make you feel more secure about all this?” Jesse smiles up at him sympathetically, “I have to finish things up here but if there’s any way to reassure you, then I’m all ears.”

Lukas sighs and shrugs, shaking his head. “I--.. I don’t  _ know! _ Just… Something to make sure that you’ll come back. Assurance…” He blows out a sigh, “I’m sorry, I-I sound  _ ridiculous _ right now… I know it’s stupid and I shouldn’t be worrying so much and yet…” He huffs, dropping his hands to his sides helplessly. Jesse frowns, thinking hard. His hand ghosts towards his own throat to fiddle with whatever necklace he had on as he--

_ Oh that’s perfect! _

Jesse’s eyes light up, surprising Lukas. He holds a hand out for Lukas to wait as he grins then reaches around to the back of his own neck, unlatching the simple black string and pulling the necklace out from under his armor. He holds it up in the morning sun, the brilliant blue stone shimmering in the light. Lukas looks at it in surprise and a bit of uncertainty which only turns to shock as the shorter man reaches up to latch it around his own neck. Snapping the clip shut, Jesse smiles. He straightens out the necklace, letting the stone set right above Lukas’ heart. He lingers a moment before sucking in a breath and stepping back with a smile.

“There!”

“Okay… I don’t entirely follow…”

Jesse rolls his eyes and chuckles, “It’s one of my favorite necklaces, very important to me. Something physical. I would never just leave it behind.” He nods up at Lukas who has understanding dawning on his face. “Here, I’ll make it better! When I see you again in like,” He shrugs with a grin, “An  _ hour! _ The very first thing I will ask for is my necklace back! It’ll be our little secret code! And something to represent my promise of coming back in one piece!” He jokes and pats the small stone over Lukas’ chest. Lukas smiles softly, holding the stone in one hand and running his fingers over the smooth surface to comfort himself. A habit he would get very used to. He nods down at him.

“Thanks… I’m sorry for being such a burden and taking this  _ away _ from you, especially if it’s important and--”

Jesse holds up a hand. He smiles, “Lukas, don’t even worry about it. I trust you and  _ nothing _ is going to happen that won’t allow me to have it back by the end of the day. You can’t hurt it  _ that _ quick!”

“Heh, I suppose you’ve got me there. I’ll… I’ll see you back in town then, yes?”

“Absolutely. It’s a promise.”

“Cross your heart and hope to die?” Lukas jokes, pointing back at him. Jesse hesitates for a split second before smiling and laughing with a nod. He makes an ‘X’ motion across his chest.

“Or stick a  _ thousand _ needles in my  _ eye!” _ He chuckles and Lukas nods. Jesse waves him off with a smile, “Now hurry!! The others are waiting for you!”

“Okay okay I’m going! Be safe!”

“I  _ will! _ Now get!” He laughs and Lukas holds his hands up innocently, giving one last smile before disappearing out of the clocktower.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The walk back to Beacontown was a peaceful one, and watching the snow melt  slowly was a real pleasure. Getting back through the gates, Lukas couldn’t help but blow out a heavy sigh at all of the work that still needed to be done. Thankfully, the people caught an understanding eye and actually pushed Lukas to go rest in the meantime. He hardly intended on just  _ leaving _ them all so soon, but God they was adamant. Suppose it only makes sense for a town to reflect their leader.

So, he took his horse and took his leave. He wouldn’t be gone for too terribly long but if he didn’t rest a little bit soon then he was going to get an absolutely morbid headache, he just knew it. Times like these are when he was glad his home was just outside of town. His own peaceful little corner of the world. 

Actually getting inside, he hadn’t expected to pass out as easily as he did. His nap might as well have just been his entire night’s sleep. When he finally woke up again, the sun was already  _ setting _ again. Talk about a cheap shot. He grumbled as he forced himself out of bed, wiping the drool off of his face.  _ Gross Lukas. Come on. You’re not a farm-boy anymore, step it up. _ He moved into the kitchen, grabbing himself a quick drink to wash the bad and  _ dry _ taste out of his mouth. The day felt normal. Calm. He reaches down and fiddles with the necklace he just remembered he had wrapped around his neck. Guilt fills him as he stares down at the stone. 

_ Overreacting to nothing like usual. _

Blowing his hair out of his face he finishes up his drink. He lazily drops his mug into his sink before grabbing his jacket off of the cou--oh? Looks like it ended up on the floor… Guess he was a bit more tired than he thought he was. He picks up his leather jacket and shakes it out a bit before pulling it back on and heading outside to grab his horse. Usually he wouldn’t make so many trips to Beacontown and back in one day, but these were odd times. Sides, he had a necklace to return and Jesse had to be back by now. So with a snap of the reigns, he was off again. 

Getting through the gates there was an odd tension throughout town. He couldn’t explain it. Everything seemed to be operating as usual, and people were still doing clean-up like he and Jesse had instructed the night before but there were more odd looks. More whispering. Lukas’ eyes narrowed as he rode on horseback through the streets. In an odd but instinctual reaction, he reaches up and ran his fingers over that stone again to find some comfort. He would’ve seen or heard  _ someone _ be mentioned by now, right? Scanning the streets he spots a young man who helped him and Jesse the previous night with the colossal. He gathers the bit of nerve he needs and approaches with a smile.

“Excuse me?”

The young man seemingly jumps, causing Lukas’ smile to falter momentarily in worry. The guy relaxes though upon seeing Lukas, he smiles with a warm laugh.

“Man you scared me! Hoo! Uh, what’s up?”

“Uh, have you seen Jesse or Radar or… Someone? I’ve got a few things I gotta return and catch up about after uhh…  _ all this.” _ He glances around, but tries keeping his tone lighthearted. The young man hesitates but nods, pointing to the Order Hall.

“Saw Jesse head that way. But uh! Lukas!” That sudden call catches his attention, and Lukas looks down at him curiously. The young man continues, a bit more nervous, “Just… Heads up, I-I think the guy had a rough night especially, he’s  _ kinda snappy… _ So just a forewarning I guess… Best of luck with what you need though!” The young man gives him a thumbs up and nervous smile then hurries off before Lukas can ask anymore questions. 

He blinks. He knows Jesse can be a bit short tempered at times, but he usually didn’t let it get to him so bad that he was snapping at random citizens. Was that why everyone was so tense all of a sudden? It’d make sense… An angry Jesse is an intimidating Jesse. He sighs. Poor guy couldn’t catch a break these days, he just hopes that he didn’t resent Lukas for not being apart of whatever happened after he left. But there was only one way to find out so he started off towards the Order Hall downtown.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Walking through the large building, Lukas felt an oddly eerie feeling envelop him. He couldn’t understand why, for nothing had changed. Were the weird weather and time changes really getting to him? Was he that sensitive?  _ Oh Petra would never let him live that down… _

Approaching the main hall he pauses at the large door, remaining silent for a moment and listening. Voices. He heard voices! His heart leaps and a smile spreads across his face as he quickly punches in the sequence to get the large door to open. He was practically bouncing off the walls in excitement. His friends made it! They made it! As soon as the door was open wide enough, the lean fella darted through, surprisingly light on his feet. Seeing the familiar messy brown hair, green suspenders and tan pants standing up by the armor sets, he grins and waves while calling out.

“ _ Jesse! Hey Jess! Man, I was worried!  _ How’d it go?” He glances around quickly, smile faltering only momentarily before returning to Jesse. “Where are the others?” He waits there expectantly, but an answer doesn’t come very quickly. In fact, he doesn’t even get acknowledged that quick. He can see Jesse  _ moving _ … Is he just being awkward? Or did something happen and he wasn’t sure how to break the news to Lukas? The latter option makes his throat run dry. Eventually, though, Jesse turns around to face him.

But the moment he opens his eyes Lukas’ stomach plummets.

Glowing yellow and red. Unnatural. Glancing down at Jesse’s right hand, he takes note of the gauntlet. Still there. After everything. That shouldn’t be right. His confusion must be evident on his face because of blink of his eyes and the yellow and red are gone, replaced with a bright smile.

“Lukas! Good to see you!”

“Uh.. Yeah! Feeling’s mutual! What… What  _ happened _ up there Jesse? I thought that gauntlet was supposed to disappear or something the moment the Admin was gone..?”

“Oh that!  _ Well, _ he wasn’t quite  _ dead _ by the time you left! Came back for round two!”

“Really? Damn I’m… I-I’m sorry I wasn’t there to help Jess. I would’ve--”

He’s cut off by Jesse holding up a flat hand. He smiles down at Lukas from the top of the steps, but something doesn’t sit right about it. Jesse continues.

“Don’t worry your pretty little head off about it Lukas. It’s all said and done now and the Admin’s gone!” He laughs a bit, “I got his powers too! Pretty cool right?” Jesse grins, pushing off the grin and twisting around in the air, showing off his newfound levitation for starters. Lukas forces himself to smile and nods.

“Wow! That sure is quite the package deal… You feeling okay with all the power?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” There’s an immediate defensiveness and Lukas holds his hands up with a weak smile.

“Hey! Easy! I was just worried about you… We haven’t dealt with these types of things before and a few townsfolk just felt you were a bit more…” He searches for a gentle term, “Rough around the edges today…” He shrugs and watches Jesse’s brows furrow in thought. He pinches and rubs his chin as he thinks in the air. A new habit, he notes. That snaps Lukas back to the present and makes him remember why he’s even there.

“Oh! Hey uh--!” He reaches into his shirt and pulls out the necklace, showing it off. Before he can continue however, Jesse smiles and drops to the ground, getting up close and personal to examine it. 

_ “Wow! _ Talk about a nice gem!”

“Wh--”

“Where’d you get it?” Jesse points to the necklace before crossing his arms, a warm smile on his face. Lukas blinks, dumbfounded. He frowns.

“Excuse me?”

“Uh, where’d you get it? It’s not that deep of a question Lukas…” Jesse suddenly loses interest  _ and _ patience based on Lukas’ hesitation. Lukas can only stand there and stutter like a fool for so long before Jesse rolls his eyes and waves him off. Pushing off the ground again, he smirks down at him condescendingly, “Yknow what? Just forget I asked man.”

“Where are the others Jess?” Lukas asks, apprehensive. He grips the stone tightly in his fist, using it to help hide his uncertainty. Jesse just shrugs and waves him off with a smile.

“Don’t worry about it! They’re all resting! Like you did and frankly,” He scoffs in amusement, “seemingly still  _ need. _ Go home for a bit Lukas. Rest. I’ll still be right here for when you need me again! I had some ideas for the town and  _ you _ are  _ just _ the builder I wanted to consult!”

“Oh, I uh… Right. Right, of course! Town. I’m uhh… I’m looking forward to hearing your ideas and generally helping move Beacontown past all this needless destruction.” He nods, glancing back towards the direction of town. Jesse smiles and nods.

“How poetic! Well, hurry on now! Skedattle! I’ll see you in the morning and we can start a new era for Beacontown!” He pauses a moment then drops to the ground by Lukas, placing a hand on his arm and smiling up at him with that charming smile. But it’s not the same. There’s a dangerous glint hidden behind those blue eyes in the yellow and red he saw earlier. Regardless he doesn’t let his fear show and Jesse continues, sliding his hand down to catch Lukas by the hand. “You’d like that,  _ right?” _ His voice is soft, and it’s Lukas’ final straw. He sucks in a breath and pulls back, crossing his arms tensely and backing up with a nervous smile and laugh.

“Yeah! Yeah I would but I  _ really _ need some more rest now Jesse… All these weather changes, the weird time, the  _ stress..! _ ” He overplays it just enough to be believable, making Jesse chuckle and nod.

“I get it! Go on, I’ll catch ya later Lukas.” He smirks back at him and Lukas has to resist the urge to gag. He turns on his heel and casually hurries out of the room. The moment the door shuts behind him, Lukas bolts. This was wrong. This was wrong. This was  _ so wrong. _ He skids to a stop to turn, darting down the main exit and back out front. He whistles for his horse, which comes galloping up. Lukas has no problem swinging on and snaps the reigns, wanting to get home and get away from this place as soon as possible. God, he practically felt  _ violated! _ Like he needed a shower after that goon touched him. 

As soon as he’s out of town he rubs the water from his eyes. God, when did he even start crying? It was once he was out of that building at least. His stomach sat there doing acrobatics. He was right. He was absolutely  _ right _ and he never should’ve just  _ left! _ Idiot! He may not have a very clear idea of what the hell happened back in that clock tower. But at this point, he didn’t need to to know one thing for certain.

Whoever that was in the Order Hall. No matter how much they looked, sounded, and even _somewhat_ acted like him. They were _not_   _Jesse._


	4. Aiden and the Aidens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So,,,,, I am among those people who think that Aiden, given time, would definitely be redeemable and I have been thinking about and wondering how a sit down and chat between him and Jesse would go for a while !!! It certainly wouldnt happen without a little bit of stress though so ;)

“ _ I trust you.” _ Jesse shakily speaks up to the one person holding him from certain death. Wide blue eyes stare at green as Jesse dangles over the edge of a cliffside, the former’s face set in a determination and assurance that makes the latter’s blood run cold. Jesse’s depending on him right now, gripping Aiden’s hand tightly with his own. 

Talk about a serious case of bad luck.

Simply put, this was the very  _ last _ thing Jesse thought he’d have to deal with today. Meeting up with Aiden was supposed to be simple. In and out. Nothing crazy happening for at least  _ one day _ of his life. But, of course, where’s the fun in that? Lukas was wanting to rekindle things with Aiden, and multiple times Jesse had found mail in town from Aiden in hopes of redemption. Well, after things with Romeo settled down, he finally felt comfortable enough to do so. I mean, sheesh, compared to Romeo Aiden was a walk in the park! Yeah he fucked up a perfectly fine city and caused a bit of a ruckus but no one  _ died.  _ Jesse can’t say the same for the people of Champion City.

Regardless of all that, he had ventured from his home world once again and seeked Aiden out. Finding him wasn’t too awfully difficult frankly, and with 4--almost 5--years said and gone after the Sky City incident he hardly got any bad looks seeking him out. Things seemed to finally be looking up for the guy! He lived a pretty peaceful life these days bunking with Maya and Gil just outside of the new town and spending his time writing. Lukas and him would get along well when they eventually meet and get past the initial wariness.

Jesse would be lying if he said he wasn’t at least a little jealous.

A relatively peaceful life surrounded by people who were slowly coming around and acting as family. No monsters. No gods. No cursed gauntlets burning shit into your skin. No Admins making your life a living hell. No hell-dimensions. No prisons. No malformed  _ beasts. _ No fighting. Nothing. Just… Relative peace. It was a life Jesse could hardly imagine at this point and if Aiden’s first reaction to seeing him was anything to go by, it was starting to show. 

Meeting up again was awkward to say the least. Jesse found their little home, was invited in and  _ lord _ the tension that wound up the moment Aiden realized who he was talking to was immeasurable. It was difficult, and Jesse felt pretty sorry for Maya and Gil who were stuck in the room with them. Eventually though, Aiden--like always--had been the one to get in the first snide remark.

“You look like  _ hell…” _

All Jesse could do was tiredly laugh and nod. “I just got back.”

“The Nether usually isn’t  _ that _ bad though is it?”

“Ohhh I wasn’t _ there _ . It’s a long story, but anyways I got your letters. Let’s talk..” He had nodded up to him and it was surprisingly as easy as that. Aiden led him further inside and the two sat down and, albeit very awkwardly at first, talked. It ended up being surprisingly nice. Normal. Aiden, while still being stubborn and strong willed had tremendously mellowed out and thought over his actions. He had grown spectacularly and Jesse was pleasantly surprised and proud to see it. There of course was still a lot of frayed edges with them, things that couldn’t easily be mended with one chat but nonetheless it was a start.

So how he went from a pleasant and soothing chat over coffee that morning to dangling over a cliffside that night gave him absolute whiplash to think about. He said he’d help out grab one little thing from their community mine.  _ One little thing. _ And of course everything had to hit the fan and go wrong. Aiden and Jesse were separated from the group, chased outwards and upwards by a mob of unrelenting monsters. He and Aiden were unprepared, maybe some shoulder pads, gauntlets and swords but nothing serious. They were backed up to this cliffside, and just when Jesse had gotten an idea, the rocks gave out from beneath him. He’s taken falls before but there’s nothing to cushion this one aside from the ragged cliffside. It seemed like narrowly escaping death was becoming more of a leisurely past-time than a terrifying experience.

And that’s where they were now, Aiden gripping Jesse to a point where he was starting to feel his circulation cut off, the late night wind battering them, and a group of mobs quickly approaching. Aiden grits his teeth, struggling to try and pull the young man up, but they’re in a shitty spot and standing would just put them both at risk. One hit from an arrow or bump from a zombie and both would be sent over the edge.

_ “I got you Jesse! Come on..” _ He grunts, slowly tugging him up. Jesse tries raising his right hand to grab him through the shaking, but the moment he gets it a little higher than his shoulder he gets a searing pain up the entire arm, concentrated in his forearm. He can’t hold back the scream of pain that rips out of his throat. Aiden nearly slips hearing the sudden shriek, looking down at Jesse in shock and confusion. Jesse clutches his arm to his chest, the thing shaking violently as he looks up at Aiden with apologetic eyes. He can’t do anything more. Those damn pains. Even months after Romeo’s powers are gone, his effects are still being felt. That gauntlet did a lot of damage to his right arm, he still got nightmares and would still wake up sometimes from the pain. 

Aiden frowns--not the time to question it but he’ll certainly have to ask. He glances back anxiously, monsters only a few meters away now. He curses under his breath and looking down at Jesse, takes a chance in sitting up to pull him up. Had he been lucky, it would’ve worked too, but near immediately he gets targeted and an arrow easily shoots him in the back. He yelps in pain, his grip slipping for a moment, causing Jesse to reach out and clutch at his arm in a panic, body now swinging in the air at the movement. He can’t describe the excruciating pain that ran up his arm from doing so, but too late now. Aiden drops back to his stomach, panting. Fearful and pained green eyes meet blood chilling blue, and he knows that he’s gotta find a way out of this for them. Aiden scans the area around them, looking both behind them for an escape and for a place over the edge. To his left, down a few meters, an outcropping catches his eye. His gaze lingers and Jesse follows it nervously. Aiden slowly nods, and coughs out an answer.

_ “I--.. I have an idea!” _ He doesn’t even have to explain further for Jesse to nod up at him. Those next words sending chills down Aiden’s spine. 

“ _ I trust you.” _

Aiden hesitated, just in shock at how genuine his tone was. He quickly shakes it off though and nods. Eyeing the small ledge to his left, he gets a good grip on Jesse’s wrists and cautiously sits up on his knees for leverage despite the pain. Jesse nods up and begins kicking his legs and Aiden swings his arms in tune. A few good swings and the momentum’s already there. Aiden sucks in a big breath, Jesse holding his, and makes the next and last swing the strongest. With a yell he throws the smaller man, Jesse flying through the air and catching to side of the ledge. 

“ _ YES!” _ He yells, smacking his fist in his hand triumphantly as he watches Jesse pull himself up back onto land. Now all he has to worry about is himself. He pushes himself up, trying to stand but immediately regretting it as pain shoots through his back.  _ The arrow. Crap.  _ He groans and looks behind him, but not really being able to assess the damage at the awkward angle.  _ Okay Aiden, time to help yourself a bit here. _

Jesse rolls onto his back for a brief moment, gathering himself and having at least a  _ little _ bit of feeling return to his legs before getting up. Always stuff like this. Always. He groan then sucks in a breath and hops up to his feet, staggering a bit as he stands but managing. He’ll have to stare at the stars another time. He quickly looks around, assessing his surroundings when he hears Aiden cry out again. He gets a clearer view of the arrow sticking out of his back and curses under his breath; he’s gotta move. With his right arm being so unreliable at the moment, climbing up and busting through the horde of mobs would be a bad idea, it would just wind them up in the same situation they just got out of, or  _ worse. _ No he’s gotta think of something else,  _ anything _ else. Looking around, there’s a thinner ledge that leads further down the cliffside at a reasonably manageable slope. If he could somehow bring Aiden down here, they wouldn’t be easily followed. He bites his lip. Getting him down though would mean Aiden would have to jump, and Jesse isn’t sure he’d be able to stick it. That arrow luckily missed his spine but seems uncomfortably close. He bites his lip then whistles to catch Aiden’s attention. He looks down at Jesse, obviously stressed out and starting to freak.

“ _ You gotta jump down here!” _

“Are you  _ crazy?! There’s an arrow in my back!  _ I can hardly stand nonetheless  _ leap!” _

“And if you  _ don’t  _ you’ll have more than just that arrow to worry about!” Jesse’s bluntness makes Aiden groan. He hated the pipsqueak being right, but he was. Frantic green eyes flick between Jesse and the now blocked path before him. He shakes his head.

“ _ You’ve gotta be shitting me… Oh God, okay, we gotta do this.” _ He hesitates again. “ _ A-And what if I fall? I-I don’t know if I can make it Jesse!” _

“Well then at least your death’ll be painless! But I’m  _ not _ letting that happen!  _ Trust _ me!  _ I won’t let you fall!” _ Jesse calls up, now standing by the edge closest to him and holding out his good hand. Aiden shakes his head but take a breath.

“ _ If I die I’m gonna fucking haunt the shit out of you!” _

_ “It’s a deal! Now hurry!” _ Jesse laughs a bit, getting a shaky smile from Aiden who nods and pushes himself to his feet. He grimaces, gritting his teeth and stumbling as he stands. God this shit hurts. He didn’t ask for this! And of course with his luck when he thought it couldn’t get any worse, a pair of grossly rotting hands cling onto his jacket.

“ _ Shit!” _ Aiden struggles in the zombie’s grip, another catching up and making it even more difficult. He staggers back, unable to twist, turn or yank his body the way he needs with that arrow. The zombies yanks and tug him away from the ledge and Jesse scowls, tense and anxious at being unable to help.

“Aiden  _ come on! We gotta go!” _

_ “I’m a bit STUCK if you hadn’t NOTICED!” _ He hisses back, trying to bat and elbow at the zombies, but only finding his arms getting caught and thrown around. Jesse scowls and searches around. Finding a few rocks he rolls his eyes and picks them up, chucking them at the zombies. One growls and stumbles back, the fast-flying rock making Aiden yelp in surprise.

“ _ Heads up!” _ Jesse yells up and Aiden only looks at him in disbelief.

“YO! If you’re tryna kill me you could be a bit more subtle about it!” He yells, another rock flying past him and hit a zombie behind him. In the short moment Jesse offers him, there’s a clearing and the rotting fingers and grip slip from his arms to just his jacket. It’s a clear shot. Eyes suddenly wide in hope, Aiden sucks in a breath and rips away from the pack, crying out in pain as the arrow gets yanked out with the jacket but he keeps his momentum up, leaping off the cliffside. As he promised, Jesse’s right there for him and catches him less than gracefully. Gripping Aiden’s t-shirt he, he pulls him further onto the ledge. Aiden staggers, his knees trying to buckle beneath him at the sickening feeling of blood flushing out of his back. Jesse slings an arm over his shoulder and uses his other hand to grip him by the waist, trying not to hurt him too much. 

“ _ Good job, you did it.  _ Let’s go now, c’mon, we gotta keep moving..” He speaks softer, more comforting as he ushers the man along, quickly moving them towards and down the ledge. Aiden’s head lulls as the lightheadedness mixed with the adrenaline starts dragging him down. Jesse holds tight, just focusing on getting the pair somewhere safe in the meantime. The way down is easier, thankfully and once back to actual stable ground, he finds the path down easily. Sure he’s had to avoid a few grabby hands here and there but the feeling of relative safety starts settling in. They can’t make it back to town like this, but there’s a small lakeside stop close by that they passed earlier. Not exactly a house but a fire pit, small box of supplies, solid wall to sit up against and freshwater a few feet away. Taking care of Aiden was priority, so that’s where they went.

Reaching the little campsite, Jesse propped Aiden up against the smooth rock, quickly darting to the fire pit and throwing some kindling and lighting it up. He scowled at noticing the blood on his hand where he was hanging onto Aiden. He’s gotta act fast. He kicks up the beach sand as he hurries over to the small supplies box to see what he has to work with. It’s mainly fishing supplies unsurprisingly--more like a fancy tackle box--but luckily with a few fresh shirts underneath as well. He laughs a bit and Aiden squints at him through his pained daze.

“Wha’re you laughin’ at Pipsqueak..?” His words slur together and Jesse rolls his eyes at the nickname. He grins a bit.

“The patterns on these things are crazy..! You are gonna  _ hate _ me for making you wear them.”

“Show m’ one…” He grumbles, frowning. Jesse grins and lifts one of the tacky button-ups up and into the light, Aiden immediately groaning and throwing his head back in disgust. “I’d rather  _ die _ than be caught dead wearin’  _ that…” _

“Yeah well too bad.” Jesse shrugs as he stuff the shirts momentarily back into the box and grabs the bucket. He quickly springs to his feet and runs with it down to the freshwater and scoops up a bucket full. Hurrying back he sets it down by the water to at least water a little then hurries back to Aiden’s side. He crouches down by him and turns Aiden around so he can get to his back. He goes to start then rolls his eyes at himself for not grabbing something to clean with. He sighs in frustration at himself and gets up again. He snatches two of the shirts out of the box and then the pail of water and sits back down behind Aiden who is now sagging against the wall.

Sitting down, he taps Aiden on the shoulder to let him know he was there and then gently pulls him to sit up semi-straight. Aiden just groans at the movement but complys. Jesse pushes up Aiden’s now bloodied shirt, not exactly revealing a prettier picture either. He grimaces and sighs, making Aiden worry.

“What..? It can’t be that bad..”

“Can you get your shirt off on your own?”

“Why you askin’ pervert?” Aiden snarks only to get smacked in the back of the head by one of the spare shirts. He grumbles, “ _ Fine, fine whatever.. Gimme a sec.” _ He sighs and raises his shaky hands to the nape of his neck, gripping his t-shirt and taking a few seconds to seemingly prepare himself. Jesse waits patiently but anxiously nonetheless. He eventually pulls through however and tugs the shirt off in one fell swoop, breath hitching in pain at the movement and some blood from the shirt making a trail up his back and onto his cheek. Jesse quickly gets to work with cleaning the wound, dipping one of the shirts in the semi-warm water and using it as a rag to clean. Aiden hisses in pain as he works but has long since quit resisting Jesse’s help. He had complained and pushed against his help the entire way down until Jesse finally snapped at him. 

Jesse snapped at him. It was funny. Some things never change I guess. Suppose he was hopeful, hopeful that things could change for the better. That they could stop being at each other’s throats all the time, but maybe that was too much to ask? Maybe it was just one of those things. A pair of personalities too different to work out. He lets out a shaky sigh as he stares down at the now ruined shirt in his hands, used to the pain by now. Jesse picks up on his demeanour, suddenly a bit more worried. His mind had ironically drifted to the same place. Same thoughts. He hesitates, taking in a soft breath as if to speak but then stopping himself. Aiden starts up a conversation instead--as always.

“Was one of my fav’rite shirts… All messed up now..” He mumbles with a sigh, gripping it then dropping it into the sand, some of the blood rubbing off onto his hands. Jesse feels a twang of guilt run through him and he sighs. 

“I’m sorry… I’m sorry for getting you into all that and just being useless up there.” Jesse lets out a frustrated sigh and shakes his head, internally scolding himself. Aiden just huffs and shrugs.

“Don’t be crazy.”

Jesse pauses in confusion. “Excuse me?”

“Y’heard me… My fault for getting us separated from the others. Plus you helped me out in the end so we’re even.”

“Well--”

“ _ Jesse.” _ Aiden’s voice snaps back, clearer. He looks back at him out of the corner of his eye from over his shoulder. Stubborn eyes stare back at him, but Jesse can’t hold it, easily deflating. Aiden’s mildly surprised by it but isn’t gonna jinx himself. So they sat in a somewhat tense silence, Jesse working quickly to patch aiden up and doing a pleasantly surprising good job. Aiden aimlessly combs his hand through the sand in front of him, zoning out as he listens to the soothing crackling of the fire. He could honestly pass out right now, but every so often Jesse would hit a bad spot and the pain would jerk him awake. Then he’d murmur an apology, Aiden would nod, and they’re go back to the silence. Rinse and repeat. Always so apologetic, still such a goody-two shoes. Suppose like their fate to bicker, some things never change. 

After a while, Aiden snaps out of dozing as he hears Jesse grunt and stand, carrying away the bucket and now ruined spare shirt, the other wrapped around Aiden’s torso in a makeshift bandage. Aiden blinks, looking down at himself and finding some of the spotty blood gone from his hands and arms. Did Jesse wipe that off too? God was he really that foggy right now? Talk about embarrassing. Noticing Jesse coming back over he squints in the light to see what he’s doing. It doesn’t take long after seeing Jesse’s smirk and the shirt in his hands to understand what’s up. Aiden rolls his eyes and groans, resting back against the rock as Jesse kneels down in front of him. 

“No way in hell.” With the blood stopped from leaving his body, he at least was starting to regain his wit a little. Jesse rolls his eyes but doesn’t drop the shit-eating grin.

“It’s cold out and I just practically had to soak your entire torso to get you back in one piece. If you won’t do it for the bold fashion statement then at  _ least _ do it for the practicality.”

Aiden stares at the shirt in his hand then to Jesse, not budging with the most unamused glare Jesse’s may have ever seen. Jesse laughs a bit at it and shakes his head as he unbuttons the shirt anyways.

“I said I’m not putting that thing on.”

“Wrapping it around your shoulders isn’t  _ technically _ wearing it! Now quit being a stubborn bastard and sit forward a sec.” He says it so casually, taking Aiden by surprise. He hesitates only to have Jesse raise a brow at him, waiting. Aiden sucks in a long, deep, overly dramatic breath and lets out a sigh of equal caliber before leaning forward. Jesse grins and scoots over, draping it around his shoulders then moving around front and straightening it out. He purses his lips once done and nods contently then stands. Aiden watches him stand and has a vaguely playful flair to his voice.

“ _ Happy?” _

“Decently!” Jesse shrugs and grabs the now messy bucket of water and walks back down to the water, throwing it all out. He scoops up some water, swishes it around and then dumps it a few times over to try and clean it out. It’d be pretty ominous if someone randomly showed up to fish only to find a bucket of diluted blood. Done with the bucket, Jesse stands there in the kneehigh water for a few minutes, the small waves feeling nice. Adventuring, he’s easily gotten used to getting thrown into cold water, so getting the chance to wade into it on his own volition is…  _ Definitely a nice change of pace. _ He has nothing to really worry about right now. Aiden’s not on the brink of death, the world is fine, and he’s here to help out some friends. Life’s good and he’s alive to see it. 

Sighing contently he reaches down and splashes a handful of water into his face. Then another. He splashes his face enough that he might as well have just dunked his head in the water. He shakes his head, blinking the water out of his eyes and shoving the wet hair out of his face and smiling, feeling refreshed. He grabs the bucket and treks back to land in a far better mood than when he left. He hums to himself as throws the bucket back in the supplies chest and gets one hell of a look from Aiden.

“You’re awfully peppy all of a sudden.. What, you secretly a mermaid and the water rejuvenates you?” He offers a shit-eating grin and Jesse rolls his eyes.

“Man if I  _ was _ I wouldn’t shut up about it. Do you know how much a tail would’ve helped me out in some places? A-And getting to just slip past things like Guardians and drowned!” Jesse laughs, finally sitting down for himself, leaning up against the rock by Aiden and blowing out a massive breath. He takes off his gauntlets, throwing them into the sand further down and rubbing his arms with a shrug, “I guess having the challenge is better though. Keeps you on your toes.”

“Coulda fooled me.”

“Pardon?”

“Mr. Witherstorm Slayer challenged by a few little Guardians? Hard to believe.”

Jesse just shakes his head with a sad smile. “Don't. Don’t…”

“What? It’s true!”

“That didn’t get done without a lot of help and a lot of  _ loss.” _

“Like the pig?”

“ _ Don’t--” _

“I didn’t mean it in a derogatory way this time. Relax would ya?” Aiden shoots Jesse a stern look and Jesse deflates, nodding.

“Sorry… He was just… Really important to me. It’s  _ silly _ I know.”

“He was your best friend right? That’s understandable to struggle over a loss like that.”

“Yeah…” Jesse hesitates, frowning as he stares down at the sand in front of him. He fiddles with it, throwing and digging around in it as he thinks, obviously hard in thought for some reason. It’s odd. While he still didn’t quite understand the connection Jesse bad to that little pig, he was at least gonna try and be respectful now. Jesse abruptly stops, seemingly coming to a decision. Aiden simply raises an eyebrow as Jesse sits up, “Reuben, my little pig, he uh… He helped me through some really rough transitions in my life.” He hears Jesse beginning to get choked up and awkwardly crosses his arms, panicking to decide how he’d even approach a crying Jesse. Jesse hesitates, blue eyes flicking up to Aiden nervously, then back to the ground. He continues, “Look man… I don’t know why I’m even rambling like this, I’m sorry for just throwing this all at  _ you _ of all people, I just--”

“Jesse.”

He looks up to Aiden.

“Look… I know we haven’t always seen  _ eye to eye. _ But, I really wanna change that. And… Hearing all of these types of things from you honestly is really helping in a way.” He shrugs, “In my jealousy I-I never stopped to think about how my actions and claims affected  _ you. _ Or how you felt about things in  _ general. _ I thought you had your head in the clouds, all high and mighty and proud or whatever… When in reality, what I thought was  _ you _ was actually  _ me…”  _ He sighs and slouches back against the rock, smiling weakly. “Just go off man. I wanna hear it and if you want something in particular to not be  _ mentioned,  _ then we can bury it like we bury any memory of me in this stupid-ass shirt!” He jokes, getting a genuine laugh out of Jesse. Jesse thinks his words over with a smile, slowly nodding then picking up speed a bit and wiping his eyes.

“ _ Thank you, Aiden. _ I feel I guess you at least deserve an explanation for Reuben. I know from the outside it seems like a kinda pathetic thing to have ever gotten to worked up over, I dunno… But um…” He hesitates, tapping his nails together and then staring up at him seriously, “ _ Off the record. _ But… Reuben, you see, was a little piglet I plucked out of my family’s little farm when I was  _ ten.” _ He sucks in a shaky breath. “My  _ father _ was killed. In a stronghold. I never found his body but if he lived he would’ve found me. Reuben, h-he was the last thing I picked up before I left home for good. So when he  _ died _ a-and so  _ suddenly…” _ Jesse feels that lump in his throat as his voice and hands shake. He’s never  _ told _ anyone this, he  _ swore _ he wouldn’t yet here he was. Aiden feels his stomach sink as he puts two and two together.

“Right… Losing him was like losing that last little semblance of your father.”

“It marked me being completely alone for real… On my own.” Jesse sucks in a breath and shakes his head, “I can’t say if it’s for better or for worse that most of my ties back to that little house are broken now. But uh,” He sucks in a deep breath, straightening up again and getting a grip on himself. “Let’s just keep that off the books okay? Off the record… I don’t want to talk about it again. At all.” He’s stubborn about it and Aiden knows that arguing would only cause strain. Sides, he gets it. Aiden easily nods.

“I never heard a thing!” He smiles and Jesse nods, relaxing a bit. He sits back again and moves back to the topic of the whole Witherstorm debacle and crossing his arms.

“I think if I had to do it all over again, I’d be able to a bit more efficiently but… It would still hurt to go through. I’m.. Not the poetic one so I can’t even  _ begin _ describing how it all feels y’know? Lukas’ books are the thing to read if you wanna know about all the knitty-gritty details of our adventures.” He laughs weakly, shaking his head before dropping it back against the rock and looking up to the sky. 

“Lukas _ writes?” _ Aiden asks incredulously. Jesse blinks, momentarily forgetting how long Aiden has really been gone. It hits him like a speeding car.

“You don’t know…” He says out of pure reaction, his tone first seeming like pity but a slightly deeper look makes it clear that it’s a saddened wonder. Aiden shifts awkwardly but nods.

“Last I heard of you guys was when you were here. It’s… Been a while so I’m not surprised I’ve got some things to catch up on.”

“Yeah… Yeah, Sorry I’m…” Jesse shakes his head, rubbing his forehead before continuing. “Yeah Lukas he’s uhh.. He’s been writing for years now and has gotten real popular back home too. Did a lot of book signings and stuff in Beacontown over these past few years. He started writing after the whole White Pumpkin incident…” Jesse trails off, trying hard to remember before nodding, “Yeah. After White Pumpkin.”

“White  _ Who.” _ Aiden asks, deadpan. “That’s a stupid name.”

Jesse laughs, “Who’s White Pumpkin? Oh, well, the only other person from outta our world that sends me mail! But don’t worry, I definitely prefer your letters. You’re good with words! You and Lukas would get along well again with your writings.”

“What kind of stuff does White Pumpkin say?”

“Oh yknow. Casual things a revenge oriented axe murderer would say like ‘Watch Out.’ and ‘I’m Coming For You.’ Which  _ first off,” _ Jesse sits up, a sly grin tugging at his lips and Aiden crosses his arms as he listens, amused. “If this guy can get  _ mail _ through the portal, then why prioritize sending me letters I will  _ never _ reply to over just, oh gee, I dunno,  _ showing up?  _ Secondly! That’s such a waste of paper!! It’s been 4 years and I still am getting letters near  _ monthly!” _ He chuckles and gets a small snicker and eyeroll out of Aiden. 

“You know you have a real knack for pissing people off to the point of wanting to murder you.”

“I know and I swear I’m not trying to!!! If I wanted to be murdered  _ that _ bad then it would’ve already happened.” He grins and Aiden laughs for probably the first time around Jesse. Jesse smiles, feeling good to actually get to be civil with Aiden. He was just a normal guy, like Jesse. He honestly really needed something like this. 

“When did you run into White Pumpkin? Had to be pretty soon after Sky City if it’s been 4 years since you saw them last.” Aiden talks about Sky City so casually now, astonishingly at peace with it. Jesse nods, picking at his fingernails.

“ _ Yeah _ . It was actually  _ directly _ after Sky City. Deadass the very next night!” Jesse states very matter-of-factly. Aiden frowns in confusion.

“I thought you guys went  _ home?” _

“It was… A lot more difficult to get back than we  _ thought…” _ He grimaces and Aiden sits there, brows furrowed in concerned curiosity. Jesse continues, sitting back to explain. “The portal that we found down in the ravine, while technically our way home, is not a straight shot back in the slightest. It just leads back to this hallway. A practically endless hallway built by the old builders with portal after portal after portal after  _ portal!” _ Jesse stares up at the guy and speaks rather casually, “We were stuck in there for weeks. Going in one portal, praying it was home, finding out it wasn’t, struggling to find the exit portal, getting out, then rinse and repeat. There were so many worlds we explored that I keep mixing them up or thinking they were apart of  _ our _ world! Of course there were a few exceptions. White Pumpkin, PAMA, ‘The Games’.” He uses air quotes and rolls his eyes to the heavens. He shakes his head, “It was a mess…” He pauses and laughs awkwardly, “Sorry. I don’t mean to get deep. You probably don’t wanna hear me of all people  _ complaining _ about life. Especially since you used to…” He hesitates, not wanting to be rude. Aiden shrugs.

“Be so jealous?”

“Yeah… I’m  _ really _ grateful for it all, don’t get me wrong! It’s just… At times it can be a lot…” Jesse murmurs, a glassy look falling over his eyes as he shifts back to looking at the stars. It was weird seeing Jesse like this. Maybe the fog in his head was making it more weird than it would’ve been but, seeing him  _ upset _ over living the life he does? Known for the things he is? Aiden frowns a bit though, he supposes he never really got to  _ hear _ Jesse’s own point of view of things. All he ever heard was the bragging, the obsession, the praise, but that was all in defense of Aiden trying to rag on him, or the wake of  the Witherstorm being defeated. Dead and gone. Lost to history. He turns his head to fully look over at Jesse.

“Were you ever scared…? Of the Witherstorm I mean.” He asks quietly, not really expecting an answer. Jesse snorts, laughing a sad laugh.

“ _ Was I ever scared?” _ He shakes his head, “Aiden, I couldn’t tell you a time throughout that entire experience when I  _ wasn’t. _ ” He’s blunt, his words being a bit more forceful than he intended. Aiden can tell there’s definitely something pent up there. Jesse hesitates, glancing over at him to make sure he didn’t somehow mess up. Seeing Aiden’s calm if not slightly confused face was reassuring and he shrugs. “I’ve… I never thought I’d be living the life I am. The Witherstorm experience, every part of it, it was only the  _ beginning _ ... Honestly I’d take a dozen Witherstorms over what I had to put up with this last summer.” Jesse hisses, clenching his fists a bit and making Aiden’s eyebrows shoot up in surprise.

“But you just said--”

“Yeah I know what I just said but… God I  _ dunno _ man… If anything, at least the Witherstorm didn’t actually know how to  _ use _ the power of the command block.” Jesse murmurs, gaze dropping to the pattern now scarred into his right forearm. Aiden follows his gaze, sitting up a bit in curiosity on the thing on Jesse’s arm. He didn’t notice it before as it was covered by his gauntlets.

“Your arm earlier. What happened with that?” He finally questions, Jesse blowing out a sigh in the meantime and then nods at the pattern. “Does that thing have something to do with it?”

“Yeah it’s… It’s a long story.”

“We got all night. Might as well start talking Freckles.” Aiden says nonchalantly, settling back against the rock with his arms and legs crossed comfortably. Jesse huffs in amusement at it and begins digging at his fingernails again in nervousness. He feels his right arm try twitching and slaps his other hand down onto it, rubbing it forcefully with his palm and sucking in a breath through his nose.

“You ever… You ever hear about the legends of the Admin..? The big ol’ head honcho of the world? Creator of all and whatever?”

Aiden surprisingly nods, catching Jesse off guard. “My father used to tell my brother and I the legends of the Admins. Kinda used it as a boogeyman type thing, would always say ‘Aiden! If you’re caught outside after dark don’t say I didn’t warn you if the ol’ Admin snatches you up!’” He laughs as he remembers the various playful threats from his childhood, Jesse just sits there slack jawed and laughs in horror.

“That’s  _ terrible!” _

“Yeah but it definitely kept me and my brother inside after dark once we stopped carin’ about the zombies!” He chuckles with a shrug and Jesse only shakes his head in disbelief. Aiden, once settling, looks at Jesse curiously. “What’s the old wives tale got anything to do with that scar?”

Jesse’s smile falters as he grows serious again. He scratches the back of his head. “ _ Well…  _ Petra and I were down in the mines one day when I found this…  _ weird _ prismarine alter underground and not far from Beacontown.”

“Under a  _ field?” _

“Yeah. That’s what I said! But anyways, atop of this stupid thing was this prismarine gauntlet. It… It was glowing, eerie, but I heard it  _ calling _ to me. Whispering my name. Praising each of my feats…” Jesse’s face contorts in disgust as he describes it. He runs his hands along his thighs, stopping and gripping his knees in stress. “ _ I picked it up. And I put it on.” _ He scowls and glances down at his arm, “From that point on, I was in no control. I was a pawn.”

“ _ What?  _ The hell do you mean you were a  _ pawn?” _

“The Admin is  _ real, Aiden.” _ He lets his words sink in for a moment, staring at him more seriously than Aiden’s ever seen Jesse. A chill travels down his spine at the simple sentence, and he sits there like a deer in the headlights with nothing to say. Jesse continues. “The gauntlets are the Admin’s own little tracking devices.  _ He _ says that they were only given to those he deemed his  _ “champions” _ but that was just talk. He wanted to keep a closer eye on me. I couldn’t take that gauntlet off in any way shape or form, only  _ he _ could.” He sucks in a shaky breath, “When I stopped playing by his rules, he decided he wanted a way to  _ permanently _ keep an eye on me.” He holds his right arm to his chest, “Activated the gauntlet in a different way. I collapsed mid-battle from the pain of it. It etched it’s powers and weird shit deep into my skin and nerves. It was like a goddamn curse. Even now, a few months after his power was sapped from him, I’m still having phantom pains and freakouts with it.”

“ _ Damn…” _ is all Aiden can manage to blow out. An awkward and heavy silence settles over the two and eventually Jesse just shrugs.

_ “Yeah. _ But um.. That’s what happened earlier. My arm had another one of its little hissy fits!” He plays it off lightly, obviously trying to use some humor to help deal with the reality of it all. Aiden lightly huffs in amusement, nodding. 

“How about… Instead of dwelling too much on all of the shit that happened thanks to the Admin, you tell me all about it and highlight the parts where you outsmarted him and his lackeys like the fools they are?” He crosses his arms and tries saving the conversation and Jesse’s sanity from spiraling down into a bad place. He’s spent his own fair share of nights laying awake in regret, and while he liked hearing Jesse’s thoughts, he didn’t want to see the guy have a breakdown or something. Jesse quirks a brow over at him, lightly amused.

“ _ You _ want to hear  _ me _ brag about how I beat a God in a fist fight?”

“Well when you put it  _ that _ way,  _ abso-fucking-lutely Jesse!” _ Aiden leans in a bit, not even hiding his grin and smiling at the bit of light that returns to Jesse’s eyes. Jesse laughs, a pleasant sound and eventually nods, settling into a comfy position that would still allow him to be expressive. He goes to start but then pauses, causing Aiden to worry for a moment, but he eases up seeing Jesse smile softly, genuinely. He looks up at Aiden, apparently catching on to his tactics and nods.

“ _ Thank you _ Aiden… For really working to be kind in the way you are right now. I really appreciate it…” 

“Thanks for comin’ all this way and still deciding to give me a shot after all the hell I’ve given you. And don’t worry, if anyone asks I’ll probably half-believe this was all a fever dream in a couple of days so might as well just go all out right? Now, let’s hear about that bitch of an admin.”


	5. Hadrian is this Fockin Close to getting slapped

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A rambly rewrite of his deal scene in Episode 8!! Added my own lil personal flair with my Jesse,,,, it gets a bit juicy,,, if yall are reading Answers along with these then yall know what's up 👀

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This probably has a lot of problems but Im too tired to care abt fixing them LKDJALSKJDFKLASJFK ENJOY ANYWAYS LMAO--

_ ‘Sure he said don’t  _ **_touch_ ** _ anything, but Slab didn’t say I couldn’t  _ **_look_ ** _ at everything!’ _ Jesse grinned to himself as he stepped further into Hadrian’s office. He instinctively held a fist close to his heart as wide blue eyes scanned upwards in awe. He already thought the hallway leading up to this was impressive with ceilings of  _ pure gold! _ His heels click and echo upwards with each small step he takes in the room. It was such an odd style. Minimalistic, not something he was used to. Furthermore, not a style he really  _ blended into. _ Glancing at his reflection in the towering windows across the room he feels oddly self-conscious. He absentmindedly fixes his messy hair, still damp from dropping into the Gladiator arena.

_ Still wet and annoyingly stringy. _

He blows out a sigh as he realizes that helping his bangs at this point is useless and just messily shoves them back, exposing his scar fully and allowing him to get a clear view of everything without hair in his face. He whistles as he eyes the odd and abstract gold stained glass lights that dance upwards in a spiral. He shakes his head as he glances over the general view of the office.  _ ‘So this was how the Old Builders lived. Or at least these ones…’ _

He finds himself drawn to the bookshelf first. Clasping his hands behind his back he quirks a brow at the weird shape of the actual shelf.  _ ‘While it’s pretty to look at, the abstract bookcase idea seems pretty counterintuitive… He could fit more books with a regular shelf.’ _ He snickers to himself,  _ ‘As if he reads enough books to fill a single shelf.’ _ He scans the titles of each book absentmindedly, slowly going down the line until taking a double take. Blue eyes widen then squint as he slaps his hands to his knees and crouches for a better look.

“A Man Forever Voyaging by…” He shakes his head, flabbergasted, “ _ Soren?” _ He scoffs, standing straight and resting his hands on his hips. “How did Hadrian  _ get _ this..?” He mumbles to himself with a thoughtful frown. In every world he’s been to so far, Soren’s books have  _ always _ come up. In  _ important _ ways too. The Redstone Heart book is the one that comes to mind, which is already odd in itself. The fact that  _ that _ book even exists makes the notion of his books just being popular hard to believe. 

_ ‘He always DID have an ego similar to these others…’ _ He’d have to question him on it whenever he saw him again. God knows when that’ll be however, and he has a few more important things he’d like to say to him  _ before that. _

Glancing back up to his reflection in the window he finds himself scowling.  _ ‘Easy Jesse…’ _ He takes a deep breath and wanders over to the tall windows. A snow storm had rolled in during the time since he left the last round of the Games. It made it a bit hard to pick out details of the competitor village. It was a lovely view however, he really had to hand it to Hadrian.

That is, if he even  _ built _ this place. Knowing this guy’s policies he wouldn’t be surprised if he just took the credit for it all. He rolls his eyes at the thought but continues staring down at the village when something moving catches his eye. It’s hard to make out at this height and distance, but when he recognizes it, he beams. Petra and Lukas camped out by one of the little stationary quarter telescopes waving up to him. He laughs--those dorks! He raises his hand and waves back, watching them start jumping--and assumedly whooping and hollering--at his acknowledgement. He grins and steps away from the window, dragging himself back to the present. He passes by Hadrian’s desk, resisting the urge to runs his fingertips over it’s smooth surface.

_ ‘Never seen a quartz desk before.’ _ It’s beautiful. Elegant. But knowing how he probably got the quartz makes his skin crawl and his blood boil. He clenches his fist, glancing upwards as he realizes how much quartz is surrounding him. Icy blue eyes stare daggers into his surroundings, had he lacked restraint and had Hadrian been in the room he would’ve kicked him into next week. But he can’t. Not yet. Not when they still need that Atlas. He blows out a sigh, the anger leaving his body with it and letting his shoulders relax. 

In fact, laying his eyes on the last notable thing in the room, all negative emotions dissipate. Eyes dance in wonder as he pads over to the armor set on display in a purple spotlight from the floor. He’s not one to be obsessed with material items but  _ damn _ if that’s not a beautiful set of armor. The elegant white base decorated in gilded ornate golds at the edges, accented with sparkling blues akin to only diamonds. He knew two things at that moment.

One: His mouth was hanging open in pure awe and it probably looked incredibly stupid.

Two: He looks  _ good _ in white and gold…

_ “Welcome Jesse!” _ Hadrian’s booming voice jolts him out of his daze. The young man visibly jumps before blowing out a breath and holding his hand over his heart. Hadrian laughs, giving him a hearty pat on the back, then smiles wide. “Fantastic to have you here! Just fantastic! Thank you for accepting my invitation.”

“Right. Sorry, I didn’t notice you come in.” Jesse mumbles, still getting a grip on himself. Hadrian snickers, shaking his head.

“ _ Nahhh! _ Only seems appropriate that you’d gravitate towards Tim’s armor… What with everyone calling you “The New Tim” down there.” A cold edge quickly makes its way into Hadrian’s voice as he clasps his hands behind his back, taking up an authoritative pose. Jesse felt the hair on the back of his neck stand but he didn’t let it show. Hadrian glances over to Jesse with a raised brow and notes his surprised expression at the nickname. He hadn’t heard anyone refer to him as that. Was he truly already getting a reputation here? Hadrian continues, not allowing Jesse to speak, “Yes, I’ve heard the rumors that they’re calling you that. And I can definitely see why--People  _ love _ an underdog story! It’s… Quite the little journey! A humble adventurer, lost in the Portal Network… Now just one more victory away from owning the Atlas.” His tone gets facetious and a tad annoyed as he retells Jesse’s story.

“Tell me why I’m here.” Jesse cuts to the chase, blue eyes meeting Hadrian’s steely brown for the first time since he got here. It catches Hadrian somewhat off-guard. “Just give it to me straight--Why did you invite me up here, Hadrian?”

He huffs and shrugs, quickly brushing off Jesse’s tone and breaking their gaze to stare back at Tim’s armor. “Why, so we could continue to discuss the terms of our deal.”

“ _ More _ terms?” Jesse blinks, astounded. Hadrian blatantly ignores Jesse’s disbelief and  _ mild _ outrage and simply nods towards the armor set.

“You can look closer.” He glances back to Jesse with a grin, “Go ahead.” He falls a step back as Jesse sighs and inspects the armor again with his arms crossed. He simply listens to Hadrian speak now, the man sauntering over to look out one of his windows. He continues, “I assume by now you’ve heard all about Tim?”

Jesse rolls his eyes, almost sporting a groan, “ _ Repeatedly.” _

Hadrian grins to himself. “ _ Everyone _ loves him.” He shakes his head, coming to a stop and staring out the window, once more taking up the authoritative pose with his hands behind his back. He shrugs, “And why  _ shouldn’t _ they? After all! He’s  _ Tim…” _

The way Hadrian spits the name makes Jesse squint and finally look back over to him. Seems Hadrian’s a rather sore loser. It’s obvious this Tim guy gives all of the competitors hope, but something didn’t sit right with Jesse… He so  _ perfect. _ So above it all. So incredible.

So fake. It sounded too good to be true, reminding Jesse of how the Order lied to keep up their own legacy. Furthermore, why would anyone be caught dead leaving their armor behind to  _ Hadrian? _ Jesse wouldn’t let him take his armor even if he was dead. What should he say? He figured Hadrian was baiting him. Trying to make him look dumb here and embarrass himself even more. He hums and crosses his arms, looking back to Tim’s armor. 

“That must  _ bug _ you. Afterall, they’re  _ your _ Games, aren’t they?” 

“They  _ ARE _ still  _ my _ games!” Hadrian immediately bites back, nearly stomping his foot like a child and pointing to himself. Jesse glances back at him with a quirked brow and Hadrian falters briefly, realizing what he just stumbled into. He momentarily glares at the young man before regaining his composure. “I love having a competitor that can…  _ Inspire _ my competitors!” He fails to sound convincing, and Jesse hides his own amusement. 

Hadrian looks back at the young man with a sharp glare, spying the edges of his mouth ever so slightly turned upwards. This kid was really  _ something. _ He turns back to stare down at the competitor village through the snow. He might as well get to the point.

“Tim is an inspiration to them, even when he’s not here. One could say he’s an inspiration  _ because _ he’s not here.”

That catches Jesse’s attention. Hadrian hears the echo of his heels as Jesse turns to fully face him, ready to check his suspicions.

“What do you mean?” Jesse crosses his arms and Hadrian smiles, not even gracing him with a look.

“It’s so much…  _ Easier _ for a legend to stay nice and shiny when it’s a fond memory…” Steel eyes finally look back to Jesse as Hadrian turns around, pushing off of the cold glass. “Easier to  _ control _ it!” He shrugs lightheartedly as he walks back across the room. Jesse’s eyes instinctively narrow as he continues. “I’ve been watching your legend grow but I  _ worry _ that with you still in the  _ picture _ it could get…” He stops several feet away from Jesse, spinning on his heel to face him and taking up that authoritative pose once more. He sucks a breath in through his teeth and shrugs helplessly, “ _ Messy.” _

“Hadrian where is this--”

“ _ I’ve _ just been starting to think it would be  _ best _ if you uh…” He clicks his tongue and narrows his eyes, brows furrowing. “ _ Made a quiet exit.” _ He ends the sentence succinctly, with a tone of finality that makes Jesse scowl. He was usually a pretty easy-going and upbeat person, but there was something about Hadrian that simply brought out the worst of the young man. Sure, nothing ever sat right with the people he fought, but Hadrian had a whole different type of vibe.

_ “Excuse me?” _

“You don’t  _ belong _ here.” His drawl thickens as his voice drops, “These games aren’t for  _ you.” _

“I don’t really _do_ _quiet exits.”_

“ _ Do you have any idea who you’re talking to?” _ His voice was flat, quiet, almost bored but Jesse knew that for men like Hadrian, the quieter they got, the more serious they were. He doesn’t flinch.

“Do  _ you?” _

Hadrian blinks, mildly surprised by the tongue on this boy. He was certainly bold. Either the sign of a fool or someone who he should genuinely be concerned over. Hadrian chuckles, the sound lightly echoing in the large office. It was certainly the former. He sighs and shakes his head with a sickeningly sweet smile.

“I know a lot more than you might think,  _ Sporto.” _ He  _ spits, _ his eyes drilling into Jesse, making the young man feel nervous once more. Jesse falters, letting his nerves show and Hadrian smirks. He shuts his eyes and smiles as he continues talking, now beginning to walk past Jesse. “See, there’s something you should know about the games.” Jesse watches him walk back over to Tim’s armor set. He runs a white gloved hand over it’s base. “No one ever wins unless we want them to.” He inspects his glove, lightly frowning at the result before turning to face Jesse with a shrug and smirk. “ _ Not even Tim.” _

Jesse’s eyes momentarily widen before he switches his own intense gaze back to the armor set, mouth slightly agape. Not in shock per se, just wonder at how they were able to pull it off. Though, he shouldn’t be surprised he supposes. Most of the wonderous stories he’s heard these past two years have ended up being false in some way, shape, or form. He huffs then sighs. Hadrian grins, hands clasped cockily behind his back.

“ _ Let that sink in for a moment, eh?” _

Jesse shoots back calmly, “I’m not buying it Hadrian. Was Tim even  _ real?” _ He quirks a brow, just waiting for confirmation of what he already knew to be true. Hadrian smiles at him as he shakes his head.

“I  _ knew _ you were a smart one, bucko.” His voice drops, snarling, “ _ Of course he’s not real.” _

Icy eyes shine in disapproval and resentment. Hadrian just smiles and begins sauntering about Tim’s armor stand and Jesse as he speaks.

“Tim gives them hope! He keeps them playing the games!” He shrugs, dropping his hands to his sides and eventually behind his back once more. Jesse’s getting real sick of him taking such a high and mighty pose. “But… No one wins.  _ Ever! _ Which is  _ why  _ **_I_ ** _ think _ it’d be in  _ your _ best interest to…” He rubs his gloved nails on his suit casually, “ _ play along.” _

“ _ Play along?” _ Jesse asks incredulously, laughter bubbling up from inside of him. Hadrian wastes no time in replying.

“Don’t you miss your friends? Your  _ treehouse?” _

Jesse blinks, going to speak before contorting in sudden suspicion. “ ‘My  _ treehouse?’ ” _

“The Atlas can see where people are from, you know! So I had Mevia go  _ check it out…” _ Hadrian grins and Jesse can feel his stomach suddenly tie itself into knots. How much did this man know about him? How reliable was the Atlas? He struggles to hide the panic that shines in his eyes, each word Hadrian spits keeping him tense and on edge. Hadrian shrugs with a genuine smile as he begins walking to a nearby wall. “Turns out you’re pretty famous. I was  _ impressed!” _

Jesse eyes the smirking man warily. Hadrian continues with a shrug eventually leaning back against the wall.

“Had her bring back some things you might be  _ interested _ in!” He chuckles with a grin before hitting the wall behind him with his elbow. Upon contact, it lights up in a bright purple and almost white glow. Keeping up the general aesthetic it seems. Jesse shields his eyes from the bright and spiraling light. Hadrian casually pushes off the wall as it opens up in a spiral pattern until the square outline is completely open wide. A sudden burst of heat gushes out of the room, hitting Jesse hard and making his face redden. He got chills at the sudden temperature change and was filled with initial confusion until he squinted into the room. He steps forward in curiosity, his head tilted lightly to the side. The source of the heat was easily apparent as the bubbling lava that drifted behind glass and up between the cracks in the obsidian floor gave off it’s classic orange glow. The obsidian was far more rocky than what he expected. Dangerous without any armor, it made Jesse tense up. It was almost like seeing a hidden facet of Hadrian’s personality. 

The sound of rustling from the obsidian walls around him catch his attention. He snaps his gaze up and quickly realizes that these were  _ cages. _ His heart stops and his eyes widen as he quickly runs to the cage to the right, gripping the bars tight.

“ _ Axel!” _ He processes everything too quickly for Axel to respond, bouncing off his cage and to the far left one. “ _ Olivia!” _ His surprise is evident and both old friends hurry to the bars of their cages to meet their friend. 

“ **_Jesse!_ ** _ ” _ They respond in near unison. Jesse beams and nods. He grips Olivia’s hands briefly then hurries over to Axel and attempts to hug him through the bars. It’s awkward but they manage. Now excited, the young man bounces back so he can get a better view of the two.

“ _ Oh my God, I can’t believe you’re  _ **_here_ ** _!” _ He keeps a smile but his light disturbment shines through. How did they get here? Why were they in these  _ cages…? _ He momentarily forgets his suspicions as his friends pipe up once more. 

“ _ Yeah! _ This creepy lady showed up and  _ knocked us out, _ and now we’re in these…” Axel scrunches up his nose and rolls in eyes, leaning on the bars as he talks, “ _ Smelly  _ **_boxes_ ** _ \--” _

“What’s going  _ on _ here?!” Olivia pipes up, smacking her hands a bit on the bars, the vibration echoing through the room. 

“ _ Yeah! _ And that’s guys voice is the  _ worst! _ I can even hear it through it  _ obsidian!” _ Axel sneers. The pair keep Jesse’s attention darting left and right, left and right, as they continue their own somewhat panicked trains of thought. Jesse stumbles over his words.

“ _ Slow down! Slow down! I-I can explain!  _ We’ve been trying to find  _ you guys _ this whole  _ time!  _ It’s all been  _ nuts! _ We--”

Olivia gasps, perking up, “You mean Petera and Lukas are still  _ with you!? That’s such a RELIEF!” _

“Yeah,  _ Ivor too!” _ Jesse grins, joy bright in his eyes. Olivia visibly deflates, becoming jaded as she leans against the bars of her cell.

_ “Oh.  _ **_Yay_ ** _.” _

Jesse giggles at the response, getting a smile out of Olivia. “Just wait until I tell the others you’re here! God, I’ve missed you guys  _ so _ much! For a while there I wasn’t sure if we were ever gonna  _ see _ you--!” Jesse is completely ready to go on about how much he’s missed the pair and furthermore a rant about all the adventures they’ve been on since seeing them last. Particularly Sky City, the White Pumpkin, PAMA and now here at the Games, until he’s cut off by the familiar ear-grating sound of Hadrian’s voice.

“ _ Wow! _ This is just…!” He claps sarcastically, “ _ Wow! _ Such a  _ tapestry _ of human drama and  _ emotion! _ And we haven’t even gotten to the best part!” He laughs and Jesse glares at him, quietly crossing his arms. Hadrian smirks back at him as he walks over to the third and final cell, “I saved the best for  _ last…” _

Jesse’s heart seizes momentarily, “ _ What?” _

“Oh  _ yes..!” _ Hadrian smiles deviously, his tone perfectly reflecting his conning nature. “Your  _ best friend!” _ Jesse’s eyes widen and his hair stands on end. Hadrian grins a shiteating grin as he gestures to the cage. “ _ Reuben.” _

Jesse stands there in momentary shock, wide eyes following Hadrian as he backs away from the obsidian structure. He shifts his attention back to the cell and begins to pad his way towards it. He can’t shake the foreboding feeling he gets from all of this.  _ If Hadrian knew about Reuben, what else did he know? How could Reuben be  _ **_back_ ** _?  _ It was impossible! Jesse watched him—…

He cuts off his own train of thought. He winces as he spies into the dark cell however his fear quickly diminishes as he sees… A  _ human _ move? A vaguely familiar man similar in stature to Axel moves up to the cell bars and all fear dissipates. The man smiles in a friendly way, shaking his hand in a typical ‘radical’ sign you see surfers wave around especially.

“‘ _ Sup!” _

There’s a pause.

Then Jesse immediately starts laughing, his anxiety releasing as he does.

Hadrian is suddenly taken aback. Why on Earth was the kid  _ laughing? This was supposed to be the thing that  _ **_got_ ** _ him? _ He has to roll with it. This could still work. Maybe the kid simply  _ was _ insane.

“Reuben… I’ve heard all about him! Your  _ best _ friend! Your partner in crime!”

Jesse shakes his head, a smile on his face in relief that Hadrian  _ really _ didn’t know what he was talking about! That must’ve been a detail he relied on Mevia to get rather than reading up on it himself, talk about pathetic! He rests his hands on his hips, confidence returning to his stance.

“You are an  _ idiot, Hadrian.” _

“ _ What.” _ He says, dumbfounded. Jesse crosses his arms shaking his head smugly.

“He’s not Reuben.”

“Wh-- _ No of course he is!  _ What do you  _ mean--” _

“ _ I  _ **_told_ ** _ you bro!” _ ‘Reuben’ speaks up, grabbing both men’s attention. “My name  _ is _ ‘Reuben’ but I’m not the same one! The Reuben  _ you’re _ looking for, was like,  _ a little piggy!” _ He places a hand towards to floor, indicating his height. He quickly follows up with a warm smile towards Jesse. “Though, seriously dude?  _ BIG. FAN.” _

Jesse grins as Hadrian slaps his forehead, dragging his hand down his face in anger. _How DARE he be humiliated like this!_ He snarls, “ _UGH!_ **_Mevia_** _!”_

“Alright Hadrian. So you used the Atlas to kidnap my best friend and… This random guy!  _ No offense--” _

“It’s cool Jesse dude.” He waves him off with a smile and Jesse nods, returning his glare to Hadrian.

“ _ Why?” _

Hadrian smiles and shakes his head as he walks past him, regaining his confidence.

“Incentive, Jesse.  _ Incentive!” _ He flicks his arm out and glances at the time on his shining gold watch. He purses his lips with a nod and continues, moving along notably faster. “See even if you  _ win-- _ And that’s a mighty big ‘ _ if’ _ \-- _ They _ will be staying to work in the mines.” He speaks with a frank smile, “Forever!” Hadrian shrugs, “ _ Or _ until they get a shot at competing which is…  _ still basically forever.” _

“ _ No!!” _ Olivia hits the bars of her cell again. Jesse notices the slight twitch of his eye at the sound. He’s irritated. Jesse’s gotten under his skin. He knows it. He scowls and closes the gap between them again, jabbing a finger in his chest.

“Okay so what’s your “deal?””

“If you _lose_ the next match and go work in my _mines…”_ He taps his fingers together, looking away with a smartass glint in his eyes. He shrugs, for once becoming seemingly genuine. “Then I’ll let your friends go. _All of ‘em!_ _You’ll_ just have to stay behind in their _place.”_ He grins, taking up that authoritative stance. He continues, playing it up. “I hear it’s _terrible_ in those mines! But… Aren’t your friends _worth_ it? _Hm?”_

“If you’re  _ this _ scared of me, then I must have a better chance at winning than  _ you’re _ letting on!”

Hadrian crosses his arms and blows an irritated sigh out of his nose. “ _ Or maybe _ I’m just tired of a little  _ pipsqueak _ interfering with my  _ Games!” _ He claps his hands together, walking back over to the cells, “ _ Okay  _ I had hoped that watching your  _ sad _ reunion would be entertaining but I’m done now. And frankly! I was quite disappointed!  _ Mevia and I will be having a talk later…”  _ He scratches his beard in thought. He quickly spins on his heel and opens his arms wide. “Whaddaya say, Sport? Your freedom for theirs? Huh?”

Jesse doesn’t even hesitate. “ _ No deal.” _

“ _ WHAT!” _ Axel whines from his cell, catching his friend--and frankly Hadrian too--off guard. He reddens a bit, “Aw come on Jesse, I mean, it’s not a  _ horrible _ deal here.”

“Uh. Yeah. Except for the part where Jesse is  _ trapped here FOREVER!” _ Olivia snaps back and Axel blows out a sigh. Jesse cocks a brow at him and only gets an apologetic shrug.

“It was worth a  _ shot! _ Nothin’  _ personal _ Jess.”

Hadrian scowls, glaring at Jesse.  _ No deal?  _ He can’t just say ‘No  _ deal.’ _ No no no no  _ no! _ That’s not how this game works. Hadrian’s steel eyes drill into the young man before him, looking for some kind of weakness,  _ anything _ that might get him to budge. The  _ friends _ were a good route to go but wasn’t quite  _ there… _ He forces himself to remember everything he read about Jesse from the Atlas in the short time he’s gotten. There was surprisingly a lot of information on him. Jesse had notable events written in the Atlas since he was a kid!

_ Since he was a kid… That may spark an idea. _

His thoughts are interrupted by Jesse, confidence oozing from the young man as he thinks he’s won. That he thinks he’s got the upper hand here like some kind of  _ fool. _

“Come on Hadrian, face it. You’ve lost. You’ve got nothing on me! There’s no way I’m taking one of your botched  _ deals! _ We’re sticking to the original terms. No more, no less.” 

The aging man smirks. It’s a sickening and devilish look that only lasts a second. Hadrian runs his fingers over some of the obsidian then inspects the dust that comes off of it and onto his pearly white gloves. Jesse can’t help but shake his head with a smile and shrug to Axel and Olivia. The two share his confidence until Hadrian speaks once more.

“And… What would your  _ father _ think of all this Jesse?”

Jesse’s blood runs freezing cold. His hands suddenly feel icy in his gauntlets, or do they? He can’t feel them at all anymore. He suddenly feels woozy, and he’s certain his expression reflects it. Turning away from his friends in a hurry, he stares at Hadrian in a mix of contempt and disbelief.

“ _ What?” _

“Oh I’m certain you heard me! I’m just…” He shrugs casually, “ _ Thinkin’ out loud here!” _ He begins sauntering around the small room, Jesse not taking his eyes off of him for a second. “Such a  _ good man… _ Tell me Jesse, how would he feel about such a  _ selfish _ decision? Choosing to save your own skin while condemning your friends to mine in the  _ Nether _ for near  _ eternity _ while you just frolick back home with your little lovebirds!” He waggles his fingers at ‘lovebirds’ in a way that can only be described as the most condescending shit in the world. Jesse bites his tongue, furiously attempting to keep his own responses in check. He can’t freak out on him with Axel and Olivia here. No. He can’t acknowledge this. He told himself he wouldn’t. This is something he’ll settle with  _ just _ Hadrian.

“Your deals and Games are rigged.” He spits.  _ “Anyone with half a brain could see that and make the obvious choice to go against them.” _

“ _ Ooh fiery! _ Now, Jesse, are you calling all of the other competitors  _ stupid? _ That’s not how you were raised…”

_ “You _ don’t  _ know _ how I was raised! That book is botched!”

“Oh so you don’t  _ want _ it then?”

“ _ THAT’S NOT WHAT--!” _ Jesse snaps then takes a step back and sucks in a deep breath. Hadrian stands before him with a shit eating grin, his head held high and arms tucked neatly behind his back.

“Alright kid, how’s about we take a step back, eh? So. Your blockhead friends here. You really just gonna leave ‘em here to rot..? Not very noble of a thing to do. I’ll ask again pipsqueak, what would your  _ father _ say? What do you think he’d  _ do? _ I don’t think he’d be very proud of a selfish  _ child.” _ He huffs and slowly begins encircling Jesse, the latter just keeping his intense gaze locked to the floor. At his sides, his fists hang tightly. Hadrian continues, patting Jesse’s shoulder, “You do all of these unique and world changing things yet what is it all for? Fame and fortune now? That ‘Witherstorm’ whatever it was seemed quite heroic! But everything since?” He shrugs again, “ehhh… I can’t say anything near the same. Maybe you keep going on all of these crazy adventures because deep down you know yourself!” 

Icy blue eyes bore into Hadrian.

“You, Jesse,  _ are still just a scared and pathetic little boy. _ You’re selfish. A coward. You don’t know what’s  _ right _ for people…” Hadrian shakes his head, each word striking Jesse like a lash. “I think we figured  _ that _ one out early on… Allowing your little red-headed friend to just get sucked up and sickened by that  _ beast _ you fought? And then recently, allowing your little blonde friend to succumb to Harper’s little freakshow robot? Oh Jesse, Jesse,  _ Jesse…” _ He shakes his head in mock disappointment, but despite it, Jesse can’t help but feel his heart sink at each thing he says. 

The young man begins deflating as Hadrian plays into each one of his insecurities. 

“Jesse, what is this guy  _ talking _ about??” Axel grips the bars of his cell and Hadrian shoots him a look. Axel grits his teeth, “ _ Hey pal you better back off!  _ Or else you’re in for one hell of a beating once I’m out of this stupid thing! Right Olivia?”

“Jesse don’t you listen to a word he says!” Olivia nods in agreement. While their words are refreshing to hear, it simply wasn’t that easy. Hadrian  _ wasn’t _ talking nonsense. In fact he knew more about Jesse than  _ anyone _ did. It was haunting. Jesse feels the sudden and unnerving weight of Hadrian clamping his hands down on his shoulders from behind.

“I think I’ve figured you out kid… So  _ desperately _ wishing to fight and be a hero in attempt to cover up the  _ failure you are.” _ He hisses quietly and Jesse grimaces, shutting his eyes tight. He moves his head in attempt to keep Hadrian from seeing his pained expression. He hears him chuckle from behind then sighs and slaps his shoulders heartily. “Such a…” He pauses, searching for the right word, “ _ Disappointment. _ No wonder your father decided to take his leave!” He brushes past Jesse with a lighthearted shrug and a smile.

“ _ Liar!” _ Jesse’s voice shakes but cuts through the suffocating air with a shocking volume. Hadrian blinks.

“Oh?” Hadrian stops in his track and turns back to Jesse with a sickeningly sweet smile. “Would you mind elaborating on that Jesse? I don’t quite  _ understand.” _

Jesse just shakes his head in silence, his mouth slammed shut. His lips quiver from the intensity. Hadrian sighs.

“Denial. I see… Why don’t I just lay it all on the table for you to hear Jesse?” He saunters over to the young man, Jesse resorting to stumbling backwards and away from him. His nerves were through the roof, and with each word Hadrian spat he could feel each hair stand on end and bristle in rage. “Your  **mother** didn’t  _ love you.” _ He snarls. Lava from cracks in the floor pops behind Jesse’s heel. “Your  **uncle** thought you were a  _ brat!” _ He leans into Jesse on that one, causing the young man to trip over himself. Olivia gasps as he momentarily hits the ground before scrambling up and backwards once more. “He didn’t  _ care _ about you! He wasn’t a  _ family _ man! All  _ you _ did was  _ take his brother away from him. Why would he love you for  _ **_that_ ** _?” _ Hadrian squints, shaking his head. Jesse finally bumps into the back wall and feels his heart leap up to his throat. Eyes wide, he darts to his right, attempting to run past Hadrian. The older man easily catches him by the wrist and spins them around.

_ “LET GO--” _

“Oh and your _Father!_ You think a man like that would ever have time for an _accident_ like _you?!”_ Hadrian laughs and Jesse can feel the tears sting the edges of his eyes. He can’t even blink them away before they’re running down his cheeks. Hadrian tightens his grip on Jesse’s wrists, yanking him disturbingly close. Jesse could smell his awful breath and if he wasn’t crying already then _that certainly would’ve done it._ He stifles a gag. Hadrian continues, “ _You ain’t_ ** _anybody_** _kid. Your family knew that. Your ‘friends’ know that. Everyone knows that._ ** _Your daddy certainly knew that._** He ran off and probably got killed over spending time with _you._ Or better yet! He knew what was good for him and took off to find a new gal!” He shoves Jesse backwards. “So, _how about it “Hero”.”_ He smirks and gestures to Axel and Olivia. “I’ll give you one final chance to decide how you _really_ feel… Do you _honestly_ think these two--”

“Three!” Reuben, the usher from earlier speaks up. Hadrian pinches the bridge of his nose at the interruption. Jesse is grateful for the even miniscule break in attention. 

“... These  _ three _ \--” He shoots a glare back towards the third cage. With no interruptions seeming to occur, he continues “--lives aren’t worth more than your  _ one..? _ And not just them remember, your  _ other _ little friends down there in the village too. You stay here, and they  _ all _ can go  _ free! _ Off to live their lives to the fullest..!”

“ _ Without me..” _ Jesse murmurs. Hadrian sighs and nods.

“ _ Yes _ but look at it this way Jesse… Everyone else you’ve known has come and gone in the same manner… It’s time you let this group  _ go.  _ For  _ their _ sakes…” 

Jesse shuts his eyes tight, allowing Hadrian’s words to sink in.  _ All  _ of them… He hated this.  _ Hated _ it! He fell  _ right _ into Hadrian’s hands, and humiliated himself in the process… Yet everything he said. It was real. Too real… How was he supposed to argue with it all? He couldn’t. Not without having Axel and Olivia barrage him with questions later. And Hadrian recognized that and used it to his advantage. His father…  _ God his father… _ The mere thought of him chokes him up. He bites his tongue, holding it all in. Bottling it up like he always has. And with that, he suddenly feels his face flush red hot as the blood surges to it in rage. Every hair of his now stood on end as his loathing and hatred for this man swelled. Finally, he snaps his head up and glares daggers into the old bastard before him.

_ “No way in hell, Hadrian.  _ I don’t make deals with  _ cheating  _ **_bastards_ ** _!” _ Jesse spits, taking even both Axel and Olivia aback. Hadrian visibly fumes, finally snapping as he steps towards Jesse.

“ _ FINE! _ We’ll play it  _ your _ way!” He steps back, jabbing a finger at him, “Which is to say I will  _ crush you!  _ And you won’t win  _ anyway!” _

Jesse snarls, ready to yell back at him before he’s cut off.

“ _ SLAB! Get this…” _ He struggles to find an insult to properly get across his distaste, “ _ FREAKSHOW ACCIDENT out of my office!” _ He near screams.

“Sure thing boss!” Slab swings around the corner and grabs Jesse by the arm just in time to keep him from damn straight  _ lunging _ at the old coot. Jesse’s lost all his composure along with Hadrian and puts up a fight against Slab. “ _ Come on, Idiot!” _

_ “LET ME GO! I SWEAR I’LL--” _

_ “ENOUGH!” _ Slab hisses, straight up grabbing him around the waist and hoisting him up. Jesse kicks and squirms in his grip, making an absolute mess of himself at this point. But he’s far from caring.

_ “NO!” _ Is the last thing Axel and Olivia hear and see from Jesse before Hadrian shrouds them in obsidian, plunging the pair back into darkness. A haunting image of their friend desperately kicking and yelling for them before being yanked back into the Games once more.


End file.
